mythologywikiaorg-20200223-history
Loki
:Odin! Dost Thou Remember :when we in early days :Blended our blood together? :When to taste beer :Thou did'st constantly refuse :Unless to both 'twas offered? ::-Sæmund's Edda, Thorpe's translation Loki was the seductively handsome Norse god of fire and chaos, though in current representations he is often forgotten for his relation to fire. He is the son of two giants, Fárbauti (cruel striker) Laufey (or Nál which means needle; implying that she was thin and weak.). His two brothers (in which were to be beside him in Ragnarok) are Býleistr (bee-lighting) and Helblindi (All blind or hel-blinder). He is referred to as the blood-brother of Odin. He becomes harbinger of Ragnarök and the father of the three chaos monsters: Fenris, Jörmungandr, and Hel. Loki mischief and intellect is not to be underestimated, as he is ultimately altough indirectly responsible for the deaths of Balder and Thor, which were caused by Hodr and Jörmungandr respectively. Loki appeared as the primary antagonist on Marvel Entertainment's 2011 film Thor, film based on the Marvel's version of the god of thunder. Loki was portrayed by broadway actor Tom Hiddleston.(Thor, 2011 film) In Mythology Early Beginnings In the beginning, Loki was merely a personification of fire and the hearth. As the stories went on, they say he was a god and a devil. The balance in life, the Yin-Yang. Asgard's Wall It is said that when the brick mason, builder of Asgard's wall, demanded an unreasonably high price for his work (he requested the sun, the moon, and Freya as his wife), it was Loki's idea to give him six months to build the wall. Thinking that surely the man would fail, and that Loki's plan was infallible, the gods all agreed; all except Freya, who was part of the bargain. When the brick mason (who turned out to be a giant in disguise) and his stallion, Svadilfari, had made much progress on the wall before his time expired, the gods all turned to Loki, threatening him with death if he didn't find a way to make sure the wall wasn't finished within the sixth month. Fearing for his life, Loki took the form of a young mare and enticed Svadilfari away from his master, causing the mason to lose the bet. Through the union of Loki and Svadilfari, it brought Odin his eight-legged steed Sleipnir. The Three Chaos Monsters Some time after the wall was built, Loki, discontent with his faithful wife Sigyn, went to Jötunheimr where he wooed the giantess Angrboda. In the time they spent together, Angrboda gave birth to three children as terrible as their father: the first, the wolf Fenris, whose mouth reached from the heavens to the earth; the second, Jörmungandr, the serpent that encircled the earth; and the third was the goddess Hel, who was given dominion over Nilfheim. In the tale of "The Binding of Fenris", we find that the eldest son of Loki and Angrboda was the wolf which ate Tyr's hand. The Dwarfs It was Loki who tricked the the two Dwarf sons of Ivaldi and the Dwarfs Brokk and Eitri to work against one another to create the gods well-known weapons and mounts. The Theft of Indun's Apples Loki was also responsible for the theft of Indun's apples. He also appears beside Thor during many of his outings to Jötunheimr. He even shared Thor's shame when Thor dressed as Freya to retrieve his hammer Mjölnir (Loki dressed as a nurse, but one can hardly call Loki in shame of dressing as a woman). The Death of Balder It was Loki who talked Hodr into throwing the mistletoe branch at his twin brother Balder, and therefore he is the true murderer of the god of light. After Balder's death, Ægir, god of the sea, invited all of the gods to his home so as they may forget their woes. It is here that Loki commits his final offense before his binding. Here he insults Bragi, calling him a coward and a poor man. He then goes on to insult Indun, saying that she was adulterous. In fact, he charged most goddesses as being unfaithful to their mates. Including Odin's own wife, Frigg, he charges Freya and Freyr with having an affair. His last jibe of the evening before being chased away by Thor was to Sif, in which he confessed to have shared a bed with her. The Binding of Loki After Loki had been chased away by Thor for insulting all the gods and goddesses, Loki was then sought out and chained to a rock by the entrails of his son Narve, who had been torn to pieces by his son, Vali. The faithful Sigyn kept watch over her husband, catching the poison from the serpent that Skadi placed over Loki's head. He was chained until the day of Ragnarök, the end of the gods. In Popular Culture *In the 1975 novel by Diana Wynne Jones, Eight Days of Luke is an allegory of the Norse gods. Loki along with several other Norse deities are characters in the story. *In the 1986 novel Digital Devil Story: Megami Tensei by Aya Nishitani, Loki is the primary antagonist. **Loki is also a recurring character in the Megami Tensei series of video games, which is based off the original novel, and appears as a high-level Persona in the Shin Megami Tensei: Persona spin-off series. **In addition, Loki appears in the anime adaption. *In the 1994 American superhero comedy film The Mask, Loki was said to have owned and created a mystical mask which allowed the wearer to be ridden of all inhibitions, giving the wearer an alternate personality.(The Mask, 1994 film)Meaning, the wearer could do or be anything he would never do normally. This mask is found by an unconfident man, played by Jim Carrey, whose life is changed upon stumbling upon it. *In the 2001 novel by Neil Gaiman American Gods, Loki and several other Norse mythological figures are major characters. *In the 2003 MMORPG video game Eve Online, an advanced ship is called "Loki-class Strategic Cruiser". *The 2005 film Son of the Mask, sequel to The Mask, features a mischievous Loki (played by Alan Cumming) as the antagonist, whom Loki has sent to retrieve the Mask. *The 2006 video game Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth, Loki can be fought depending on the path the player takes. *Two of the central A.I. characters, from the 2007 science-fiction novel Halo: Contact Harvest by Joesph Staten, are named after Loki and Sif. * The trading card game Yu-Gi-Oh! has a card named "Polar God Loki". Comic books Loki (Comic) Loki also appears in Marvel Universe comics as a supervillain with both his own series, and various times in the Thor series. In the series, after slaying the giant Laufey, Odin found a small Asgardian-sized child hidden within the primary stronghold of the Frost Giants. The child was Loki, and Laufey kept him hidden from his people due to his shame over his son's small size. Odin took the boy because he showed strength when Odin slew his father in combat and raised him as his son alongside his biological son Thor. Portrayal File:Loki in Avengers (2).jpg|Tom Hiddleston Thor (2011)/Avengers (2012) File:Loki in Almighty Thor.jpg|Richard Grieco Almighty Thor File:Loki in Son of the Mask.jpg|Alan Cumming Son of the Mask External Links References Gallery In comics Loki4.jpg|Loki in Journey into Mystery Loki in comics.jpg Loki Ultimate.jpg|Ultimate Loki In film Loki in Thor.jpg|Loki in Thor, portrayed by Tom Hiddleston Loki in Avengers.jpg|Loki in Avengers Loki in Almighty Thor (2).jpg|Loki in Almighty Thor Loki in Avengers (5).png Loki in Avengers (4).jpg Loki in Avengers (3).jpg In television Loki in Avengers - Earth Mightiest Heroes.png|Loki in Avengers: Earth Mightiest Heroes Loki in Avengers - Earth Mightiest Heroes (2).jpg Category:Æsir Category:Norse gods Category:Trickster Gods Category:Gods